Friday, October 24, 2008

There is an event coming up that I miss every year and I am not going to miss it this year. The reason I miss it every year is because I never know about it until it's over. Does that ever happen to you? This event is a competition between the local high school marching bands and drill teams. It's called the District III Marching Band Festival and it's been going on for 45 years. On Sunday morning, the Idaho Statesman does a big layout in the their local section about the competition and the results.It is then that I realize, dang it, I missed it again.

Fortunately, this year I was determined not to let that happen. I am so glad I found this on idahostatesman.com and I thought I would share it with you. The competition starts tomorrow at the Bronco Stadium. Gates open at 1 pm where you can purchase your ticket. Adults are $7 and students and seniors are $5.

The first school performs at 2pm. The schools I am interested in watching start at 5:45. I hope that didn't sound snobbish. You can certainly go at 1:00 but it makes for a long day. The competition ends around 8:30, then the BSU Blue Thunder Marching Band performs, and then at 8:45ish the trophies are awarded. And they are big trophies. Click here to see a list of the participating high schools and what time they are performing, I guess competing.

If you go dress warm and bring lots of blankets.

Oh you are going to love this dumb factoid about myself. In 1992, I had the privilege of being part of the Centennial High School Marching Band and Drill team. When we competed in District III that year, we beat Capital High School!! Now that may not sound like it is a big deal, but I think they had, like, an 18 year winning streak that we had just broken. And that of course was our only goal. Beat Capital. And we did.

Thursday, October 23, 2008

On Wednesday and Thursday mornings, I had the pleasure of going to Linder Farms with the boy and his two different preschools. To be honest, I didn't have a great time on Wednesday because it was super crowded and it felt like we were being herded like cattle. It was also freezing cold and the wind was blowing. On Thursday, however, we had a really fun time. It was more organized and less crowded. It was also a lot warmer. My favorite experience at Linder Farms was the hay ride.

I also liked the straw maze.

After the straw maze we walked out to the pumpkin patch (more like a gigantic field) and got a pumpkin. The boy picked an all green pumpkin because that's what he wanted. It actually made a cute addition to our decor.

****Highly Recommended. A good place for preschool field trips. (Not nearly as cool as Wagner Farms, but I guess if you've never been to Wagner Farms you wouldn't know what you're missing.)Also, if you wondering which one to go to between the Mazie or Linder Farms, I personally think the Maize is more fun and has more to do, although it is more expensive. If anyone has anything to add about Linder Farms or anything else, please make a comment. They are always greatly appreciated. Also, add yourself as a follower and make my day!

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

If you're looking for a pumpkin patch with a small town feel, look no further than Spyglass Gardens. Spyglass Gardens started as one couple's dream. Steven and Wendy have a home and some land--not a lot, but enough. On their land they grow fruits and vegetables without pesticides. They harvest their crops and sell them right from the gardens next to their home. They stay busy all summer long, but things don't slow down in the fall. People return to buy straw bales, corn stalks, and cinderella pumpkins. Children return to run through the straw maze and pick a pumpkin from the pumpkin patch. (No hay rides unfortunately.)

We've been to Spyglass twice already this year and both times have been really fun and uncrowded. The boy and I played in the straw maze by ourselves for fifteen minutes. We played I'm Gonna Get Cha and Can't Catch Me and I'm Going To Beat You(as in beat you to the other side).

Then I pulled him and the baby in the wagon(provided by Spyglass, they have plenty on site) and we went over and found some more pumpkins. I say more because we already have 10 from our last trip.

Then we bought some straw bales and some corn stalks and wished we could afford the ghost pumpkins and the cinderella pumpkins but we couldn't. So Wendy helped me load up the van and this is what we did when we got home.

****We highly recommend Spyglass Gardens. They are located on 3445 S. Linder Rd between Victory and Amity. Their October hours are Monday - Saturday 10:00am to 6:30 pm and Sundays between 12:30 to 5:30 pm. See their website for more info.

Saturday, October 18, 2008

That's the name we gave her when we met her for the first time at the Scarecrow Stroll in the Idaho Botanical Garden.

I always want to say gardens with an s.

If you're like me and you don't like crowds-- go to places you want to go on game day. Unless you're going to the game. Then by all means have a great time and go broncos. If you're not going to the football game, go somewhere you've been wanting to go. Trust me, you'll have the whole place to yourself.

This is what happened to us on Friday evening when we ventured out to the Idaho Botanical Garden and the rest of Boise ventured to the BSU/Hawaii game. It was 70 degrees that day and the weather was perfect. The fall colors were beautiful and there were still many flowers in bloom. The kids had a great time running around. The boy liked to throw rocks into various streams, ponds, waterfalls, and fountains.

And run and run and run and run.

The girl liked taking pictures of the decorated scarecrows.

And the baby liked sticking her hands into the streams.

I quite enjoyed the peace and quiet and the beautiful fall foliage.

We were the only, only, only, people there. Except for the family that was there for like 10 minutes. So that doesn't really count.We saw lots of birds and quail and squirrels. There we many flowers still in bloom. And even though we have been there before, we still spent almost two hours there. What did you do for two hours?

We just walked around and explored nature. Snapped a few pictures.

And it was fun. And quiet.

And not crowded. And not hot. And really fun.

We went between the hours of 5 and 7 pm and toward the end of the evening the sun was setting and I was able to get a cool picture of the girl.

I am by no means a photographer, but I thought it turned out cool.

The cost to get in was so cheap I had to ask the lady, "Did you charge for me?" Yes. Four dollars for an adult, two dollars for kids four and older. So it cost us six dollars to get in.Six dollars for two hours of family entertainment. Think Mastercard commercial. Priceless.

****Four out of four stars. Click here for the The Idaho Botanical Garden website.

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

I just figured out why my daughter has been asking me for so long to put a poll on the blog that asks you who you want to vote for. Why is an eight year old concerned with these matters? Apparently, at school, there are several children talking politics. In fact, they each have some pretty strong opinions about the candidates they like and don't like. A few days ago, the girl came home and said, "Mom, so and so said that if Obama gets to be president, he'll take away Disneyland." Really. I guess scare tactics run in children's circles as well as adults.

This afternoon we put the poll up together. As soon as it posted the girl says, can I vote? Of course you can vote. So she clicked on her favorite guy and then gave me a big smile. I guess all she wanted was to vote. Is that too much to ask?

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Last Thursday we went to the Maize. It was amazing. Before we left, I printed off some $1 off coupons. It's one dollar off per person so I thought it was worth the 30 seconds of my time. We drove the four minutes it took us to get to the Maize and met some friends there. We

purchased the Bargain pass which includes the maze and all the fun in the courtyard. It is $12.00 for ages 12 and up and $9.00 for kids 4-11. Three and under is free. We were really glad we purchased the bargain pass because the maze is fun, but the courtyard is a blast.

I was glad we agreed on which maze to walk through since there were two very different choices. Obama and McCain. The kids had fun taking turns on deciding whether to go right,

left, or straight. It took us about 20-30 minutes to find our way out.

After the maze, we played in the courtyard which has many fun activities for the young ones. They jumped on the giant jumping pillow,

peddled the peddle carts,

slid down the slides,

played in the corn box,

rode the bucking cow train,

pet the pony and the goat,

and took advantage of a free hayride (minus the hay). We spent over an hour doing these activities.

****Four out of four stars. We will be back. Probably with the boy's preschool friends. Speaking of preschool, check out the Maize's special prices and hours for preschool groups on their website. It's easy to find. Located off Meridian road just south of Columbia Rd. Take exit 44 and head south on Meridian for five miles. You will see it on your right.

I started Don't Get Bored in Idahoas a guide to help me find new places to explore and new things to do with my kids. I needed something to help me when my kids would ask, "Mom, what are we doing today?"

Here's my solution to that question. In one place I have LINKS to different websites and local activities that help me plan out our week. You can find these in the right hand column. Besides the links to various places, I also blog about my experience in hopes that it will be useful information for you. I've placed a star * next to any places that we have been to and blogged about.

If it has a star next to it, check the LABELS in the left hand column for my blog review. If you are looking for things to do this summer check under the label of "Summer" to get some ideas. You don't want to get bored in Idaho.

Your new friend,

Amanda

P.S. I have a few talents, but photography is not one of them. Please excuse the crappy photos.